Japan renewed its criticism of China’s “assertive” maritime activities in a report published days after Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said he wanted a summit meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping. Japan is strongly concerned about China’s actions at sea and the “lack of transparency in the military and security,” the Ministry of Defense said today in an annual white paper. Japan must continue to pay close attention to the issue, the ministry said. Chinese and Japanese ships have been tailing one another in waters around disputed East China Sea islands since Japan bought three of them from a private owner in 2012. While the report shows Chinese incursions into what Japan regards as its territorial waters have fallen this year, the row over the islets has contributed to preventing a summit taking place. The report also reflects Abe’s switch to a more active defense policy and comes after the cabinet on July 1 passed a resolution to reinterpret Japan’s pacifist constitution to allow the military to defend other nations.